Study Desk

"You shall then leave them in the tent of meeting in front of the testimony, where I meet with you.

So Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and all their leaders gave him a staff, one for each leader, for their fathers' households, twelve staffs in all, with the staff of Aaron among their staffs.

Now on the next day Moses went into the tent of the testimony; and behold, Aaron's staff for the house of Levi had sprouted and produced buds and bloomed with blossoms, and it yielded ripe almonds.

So the LORD said to Aaron, "You, your sons, and your father's household with you shall bear the guilt in connection with the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear the guilt in connection with your priesthood.

"But also bring your brothers with you, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, so that they may join you and serve you, while you and your sons with you are before the tent of the testimony.

"But you and your sons with you shall attend to your priesthood for everything that concerns the altar and inside the veil, and you are to perform service. I am giving you the priesthood as a service that is a gift, and the unauthorized person who comes near shall be put to death."

"This shall be yours from the most holy gifts reserved from the fire; every offering of theirs, namely every grain offering, every sin offering, and every guilt offering, with which they shall make restitution to Me, shall be most holy for you and for your sons.

"This also is yours, the offering of their gift, that is, all the wave offerings of the sons of Israel; I have given them to you and to your sons and daughters with you as a permanent allotment. Everyone of your household who is clean may eat it.

"All the offerings of the holy gifts, which the sons of Israel offer to the LORD, I have given to you and your sons and your daughters with you, as a permanent allotment. It is a permanent covenant of salt before the LORD to you and your descendants with you."

'And Eleazar the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger and sprinkle some of its blood toward the front of the tent of meeting seven times.

'Then the heifer shall be burned in his sight; its hide, its flesh, and its blood, with its refuse, shall be burned.

'That one shall purify himself with the water on the third day and on the seventh day, and then he will be clean; but if he does not purify himself on the third day and on the seventh day, he will not be clean.

'Also, anyone who in the open field touches one who has been killed with a sword or one who has died naturally, or touches a human bone or a grave, will be unclean for seven days.

Then the people argued with Moses and spoke, saying, "If only we had perished when our brothers perished before the LORD!

Then Moses raised his hand and struck the rock twice with his staff; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their livestock drank.

Those were called the waters of Meribah, because the sons of Israel argued with the LORD, and He proved Himself holy among them.

Edom, however, said to him, "You shall not pass through us, or I will come out with the sword against you."

But he said, "You shall not pass through." And Edom came out against him with a heavy force and a strong hand.

So the people spoke against God and Moses: "Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we are disgusted with this miserable food."

So the people came to Moses and said, "We have sinned, because we have spoken against the LORD and against you; intercede with the LORD, that He will remove the serpents from us." And Moses interceded for the people.